I Remember
by Apocalyptic-Fairytale
Summary: Brief moments of Cloud remembering Aerith after her death. Set in game. CloudxAerith, CloudxAeris, Clourith, Cleris


_A series of oneshots of Cloud remembering Aerith throughout the game of VII._

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_Morning_

"_Yo! Spikey! Wake the hell up!" Barret would say._

"_Hey! Wake up, Cloud!" Tifa would shout._

"_Wake up chocobo head!" The young Ninja would proclaim._

"_Cloud, you must awaken" Red XIII would say with a few sniffs._

"_Wake up lassie, it's time to go!" Cait Sith would chirp happily._

"_Get yer lazy ass up and let's go!" Cid would holler loudly._

"_Cloud, it's time to leave, get up." Vincent's dead-tone voice would mumble dryly._

Every morning, as Cloud laid awake in his tent, one of his friends would arrive to waken him. And each time, he'd be drawn back to the way she used to wake him and how different it was compared to all the rest.

She was always so playful… so cheerful.

He would hear gentle tones, as soft as rose, say to him early in the dewy morning light; "Wake up, Cloud."  
And then he'd awake to see stunning, innocent green eyes gazing down at him, filling him with warmth only the sun could cast. A soft smile was always on her face when she would wake him, instantly causing a smile on his face.

It was exactly how he always wanted to start his day…

___  
_Cook_

As the bowl of sloppy stew plopped in front of him, he heard Cid say loudly; "Eat yer damn food!"

Slop was what it was. Cloud looked around his friends and saw each of them quickly devouring their share of the supper. As usual, one face was gone… Aerith. She would always sit near him during supper, and out of force of habit, Cloud couldn't help but look to his side, hoping to see her sweet smile.

But she was gone.

Feeling the insufferable reality quickly falling around him, Cloud averted his gaze back to his own bowl and took a bite. It tasted like dog food. Quickly, he spit out the food, cussing to himself about its taste.

Suddenly, he remembered how Aerith used to cook. Everyone always hated her cooking, and each time she would concoct her own meal everyone would skip that night's dinner… _except Cloud_. She always over salted the stews, or over cooked the meat, or added too many spices… but nonetheless, _he loved it_.

A weak smile appeared on Cloud's face as he remembered the way she would hum to herself as she cooked. If he could choose, he'd have some of her salty, over cooked, spicey soup in a flash.

… _if only she were around._

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__Smile_

As Cloud walked through the flat valley of dry, dead grass, heading to their next destination, something caught his eye. As he looked upon the small, white delicate flower, the vision of her smile flashed before him. Aerith's smile was always so bright, so pure and beautiful. Every time she used to smile, Cloud couldn't help but catch notice to how it always appeared like a blooming flower. Vibrant and beautiful. A sign of life, hope, and peace.

Even though this flower made him think of her smile, he knew it was nowhere near as beautiful as her smile… but it came closer than anything else.

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__Laughter_

All of his friends chuckled uncontrollable from the childish fight between Cid and Yuffie. The group laughed less since her death, but it still occurred. Now, being one of those frequent times. Cloud, on the other hand, was always silent. He was silent before but since her death he was more reticent than ever. The last time he laughed… _was with her_.

He always adored the way she would giggle so innocently. The soft tunes of her laughter could have put the world's prettiest sounds to shame. And each time their friends would break into a fit of chuckles, Cloud would feel his heart break a little more as he realized her laugh wasn't chiming through the air and that… he would never hear her laugh again.

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__The perfect Girl_

One day, for no reason at all, Cloud remembered something he had dreamed of . It was of his mother, she told him to settle down and have a nice older girlfriend. At the time, Cloud wasn't interested, but that was _before_ he ever met the nice, older woman that he would fall in love with. If only he could go back in time and say to his dear mother; "_Her name's Aerith._" But he couldn't, _both women were gone_.

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__Dreams_

Of all the things that constantly reminded him of her. Sleeping was the biggest. Ever since she entered his dream before she left for the forgotten city, he found it overwhelming to fall asleep as he was secretly wishing that she would appear in his dreams. And every night he slept, his heart would break as she would appear in his dreams, and appear only as a figment of his memory of her rather than her real self. She wasn't real like how she was in the other dream.

And although it made him happy to at least have her for a while, the pain he would feel after he woke and realized her being back with him was nothing but a dream... would be much greater. This repeated dreaming of her and having her for a brief moment in time to only have her torn from him with daybreak was something he always thought about…

Was it a blessing … or torment to have her for such short amounts of time and then realize she would be taken from him… _once again_?

One thing was for sure, Cloud looked forward to sleeping _every_ day. Knowing and loving her for as little time as it was, was better than not having her at all.

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__Memoirs_

While in Icicle Inn, Cloud quietly watched the old tapes, fascination and a sense of bittersweetness rushing through him as he saw the flower girl he once knew…so young. She was just a baby in these tapes but he could tell it was her. The smile on her face proved it was her. He couldn't help but think of how her own child would have looked if she had lived and not died… As he watched the life the flower girl was forced to have, he quickly felt the hatred in his soul towards Shinra darken.

And at the same time, he couldn't help but think of the children they could have had… Cloud always thought she would make an amazing mother… and now, it was too late.

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__Realization_

As he watched the clear crystal before him, an image of Aerith's last moments flashed across the surface as if it were a movie. Cloud felt his breath catch as he looked over the face he loved and cherished so dearly. She was kneeling in prayer, and at the time of when it happened, Cloud wasn't sure what she was doing. It was only now that he and the rest could figure it out. She risked her life… her future… so she could pray for Holy and save the planet. Cloud was disappointed in himself that it took so long to figure it out… but now_, he knew_.

He knew the bravery she held as she traveled here alone. Knew the determination she carried as she prayed for the planet without hesitation. He knew the sacrifice she was making as she decided to risk her own life in order to save everyone and the planet. She knew exactly what she had to do… but it cost her her life… her future…

When the vision of Aerith's prayer ended, Cloud spoke more tender than he ever did before. Not caring whether or not his surrounding friends thought he was crazy for speaking to Aerith as if she were by his very side;

_"I'm sorry… Aerith. I should have figured this out sooner."  
"You left us without saying a word…. It was so sudden, so I couldn't think…"  
"That's why it took so long for me to find out. But, Aerith… I understand now."_

Still, despite Aerith's dying prayer, Sephiroth was threatening the very thing she died for and Holy couldn't move.

Cloud looked up to the sky as if hoping his words were more clear for Aerith to hear, his voice a soft murmur;

_"I'll do the rest Aerith."_

He hated thinking about Aerith afraid of what could happen to the planet. And so, he hoped that his promise was enough to ease her worried mind.

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__Never Forget_

It was finally over. Sephiroth was stopped. The planet had a chance now. As Cloud fell into a dark space, thin rivers of glowing lifestream appeared before his eyes. Slowly and gently, it wrapped around his body, almost as if it were a hug. A feeling of yearning spread through Cloud's heart. It was a feeling he never felt before meeting Aerith and hasn't felt since. As if in a dream, Cloud saw a familiar delicate hand reach down towards him.

He knew exactly who the hand belonged to… it was a hand he hadn't held in what felt like forever.

He could never forget her.

Without hesitation, Cloud slowly began to reach up to grab hold of the hand. But just as his hand was about to touch Aerith's, everything turned to black, and the soothing feel of her aura vanished.

She was gone. Gone from the living world… but not gone from Cloud's mind… and heart.

...

"_I remember Aerith a lot."_


End file.
